Where is the common ground among Minnesota lawmakers on a state budget?

Posted at 12:02 PM on April 11, 2011 by Michael Caputo

We've talked for weeks at Insight Now, Minnesota Public Radio's online town square, about the values that ought to apply when crafting a state budget with a $5 million hole in it.

In our Common Cents Conversations, we've tackled what tax reform might look, we looked into whether K-12 education could be revised with a tight state budget and how the public - and state legislators - define what is a "fair share" of taxes and services.

On Monday, the Humphrey Institue's Center for the Study of Politics and Governance will bring in four state government leaders to talk about the budget and the looming deficit:

Amy Koch, Minnesota Senator Majority Leader
Kurt Zellers, Minnesota House of Representatives Speaker
Myron Frans, Commissioner, Department of Revenue
Jim Schowalter, Commissioner, Minnesota Management and Budget

Steve Sviggum, the former Speaker of the House and now a legislative fellow with the center moderates this panel at the Cowles Auditorium.

We decided to take our computer along and liveblog this discussion. The talk begins at 12:30. You can make comments below, or you can Tweet them using the hashtag #hhhinstitute.